Every year since I can remember the new year would come with me setting high and lofty resolutions. This year I will lose 20 pounds, I will not eat out, I will work out 6 days a week, watch less tv, and I will blah, blah, blah. Don’t get me wrong resolutions like goals are great when you set them realistically. The challenge I faced was setting unrealistic goals. By setting those goals, I would then get discouraged when I could not meet them. Instead of re-evaluating I would get frustrated and just quit altogether. Well this year is different 🙂 I know you are thinking we have heard this before.

My personal goals are very simple and attainable.

1. Everyday chose to do something that increases my overall health and life.
2. Make a list of things I want to try and do one thing a month.
3. Be realistic with expectations
4. Take at least 1 hour a day to do something I like
5. Share and spread Love everywhere I go
6. Keep it simple

Very simple and things I am sure I can keep. If not, I will repeat number 3. 😉

As we close out 2012, I took a moment to reflect on my 2012. I can say that this year has been very much a rollercoaster of emotions. I have experienced great joy and tremendous pain. Both personal loss and personal gain. Some relationships blossomed while others were strained. Despite it my love for family and the goodness in people remains. My perserverance was battle tested and sometimes wounded to the point of surrender. However everytime I was ready to waive the right flag the right person, place, or thing would appear and assure me that I would make it through. I have had the opportunity to learn a lot about myself. What my emotions are during my high times as well as low times. I have learned who my inner circle consists of and I am okay with that. I understand that just because you are a friend to some does not mean they are a friend back- and that was okay. I understood where they were and chose to either meet them on their level or I left them alone. I have learned to show more empathy without letting that blind me from the true person. Overall I am very thankful for the growth and the tests. Without them I would not have a story or testimony to share with others. Be safe out there tonight and bring in 2013 with love, peace, and joy in you hearts!!

It has been a LONG time since I last posted. Such is life. These past few months have been very busy so I took a little hiatus from my writing. During my time away life happened fast and furiously. They were the best and worst of times, a myriad of emotions and maturity. I had the opportunity to welcome new members into the family, care for recovering loved ones, and the emotional pain of saying goodbye to dearly departed loved ones. Through it all, I was able to process each and every moment and take a lesson from it to apply to my everyday living. I took that time to reflect, inspect, and learn so much about me and the relationships I have cultivated. I am refreshed, renewed, and exhilarated.

The beauty of a woman
Is not in the clothes she wears,
The figure that she carries,
Or the way she combs her hair.

The beauty of a woman must be seen from in her eyes,
Because that is the doorway to her heart,
The place where love resides.
The beauty of a woman is not in a facial mole
But true beauty in a woman is reflected in her soul.

It is the caring that she lovingly gives,
The passion that she shows,
And the beauty of a woman
With passing years only grows!

I came across this on one of my friends Facebook page and wanted to share. I really enjoyed the M&M analogy

“I don’t understand hate and prejudice just like I don’t understand why some people are biased against and pretend to not like certain colors of M&Ms. It’s all in your head because they all taste exactly the same; and regardless of the color of their shell, they all look just alike on the inside too.

If you don’t believe either is true, wash the color off a pack before eating them or wear a blind fold while eating them and see if you know what color it is you are eating. I’ll buy the M&Ms, set up the experiment and record the data for you. . .

All people were created in God’s image. We all require a heart, a brain, lungs, blood,etc. Inside we are pretty much all the same. If you don’t believe me ask a doctor. Better yet, ask any surgeon if he/she is handed a heart to put into a transplant recipient if he/she can tell the color of the person it came from just by looking at it. . .

Prejudice and bias start and cultivate in the mind. If you don’t like a particular person because they did something to you, fine. But how do you hate an entire subset of people who you don’t even know or have ever had any dealings with previously?

We have all had bad experiences with people of various backgrounds, but do we begin to hate all teachers, police officers, relatives, doctors, friends, classmates b/c of a bad experience with one? So explain hating an even more generalized subset of people. . .

People are like M&Ms. We were made to be a little soft and sweet on the inside and some of us can be nutty too, but we are born fundamentally all the same. Remember, although our personalities may be Skittles, we as people are M&Ms.” ~Nyke